Woo Me, Wooyoung ~ WooLix

~ Chapter 12 ~

We held hands all the way from the car to the room Wooyoung’s sister was in, and my heart felt lighter with every step. When Wooyoung was about to open the door, though, he let go of my hand with a slightly guilty look. My heart, which had been floating high up in the air, came back down with a thud.

Did he not want his dad and sister to see us holding hands? Was he embarrassed that I was there? I’d thought that I meant something to him, but obviously I was wrong. Where his family was concerned, it seemed, I was just a friend; nothing more.

Feeling slightly glum, I followed Wooyoung into the hospital room, and closed the door behind me. A man, who I assumed was Wooyoung’s dad, had been sitting beside the bed. As soon as we entered the room, he stood up and came over to us, giving Wooyoung a hug.

“Hi, Woo, I’m glad you’re here. It’s been a long day.”

“Hey, Dad. Hey, Kyung-ah!” Wooyoung gave a little wave to the young woman in the bed, who smiled and waved back.

I stood just inside the door, nervously looking around the room, not wanting to intrude on their family time. But while Wooyoung and his sister were greeting each other, his dad looked at me curiously. When Wooyoung stepped back from the bed again, he nudged him and asked, “Who’s this, Woo?”

“Oh, um, this is-”

“I’m Felix,” I finished for him. “Wooyoung’s friend. He told me about Kyung-ah today, and even though I haven’t known him that long, I could tell he was quite upset. So I offered to give him a lift here.”

The man smiled at me. “Well, we’re very grateful for your time. You're obviously a good friend.”

Suddenly Wooyoung stepped forward and took my hand in his. “Thank you,” he murmured, smiling and gazing into my eyes.

For a moment, all I could do was gaze back, caught up in his spell. The next thing I knew, Wooyoung was walking back to the bed, towing me behind him. He sat down in the chair closest to Kyung-ah, and I settled on the chair next to him.

Wooyoung’s dad retrieved another chair from across the room and sat on the other side of the bed. The three family members then started talking about what had been happening during the day, so I just sat and listened. I felt a bit self-conscious about being there, since I wasn’t part of the family, but Wooyoung kept hold of my hand, and I gradually relaxed.

A little while later, Wooyoung’s dad stood up and announced, “I'm going to go and get a coffee. Why don't you come with me, Felix?”

I looked up at him in surprise. “M-me?”

He smiled broadly. “Yes, why don't we let Woo and Kyung-ah catch up for a bit while we stretch our legs?”

“O-okay, sure…”

Wooyoung squeezed my hand gently and smiled reassuringly at me before letting go of my hand. Smiling back, I stood up and followed his dad out the door.

Five minutes later we were standing in the little café on the ground floor of the hospital.

“I'm getting coffees for me and Kyung-ah – do you want anything, Felix?”

“Oh, um, maybe a hot chocolate? Thanks,“ I replied.

“Sure.” He turned to make the order, but I had a sudden thought.

“Oh, wait! Umm…”

Wooyoung’s dad turned back, a questioning look on his face.

“C-can you get a hot chocolate for Wooyoung too, please? I'm sure he'd love one.”